1984

Mark Hales in Alf's car

MH was entrusted with the care of Alf Boarer's 1300cc GP Midget at Northampton Stadium recently, the car in which Alf won the World Championship on August 4.

ALTHOUGH some of the traditional front-engined American styles Midgets remain in use, current thinking follows established circuit formula car practice, putting the engine behind the driver. With a wheelbase of only six feet, space is limited and in this country where the regulations allow only 1300cc engines the transverse Mini engine / gearbox unit is the present favourite, being robust, easily available and relatively easy to modify. There are still some VW powered cars around, Basil Craske's version being a notable winner. The air cooled unit is more difficult and expensive to tune however and will not stand any abuse, displaying a tendency to spread itself over the tarmac when over-revved.

Alf Boarer's self-built Arrow is a beautifully constructed, neat and purposeful racing car rather like a miniature Formula Ford with transverse engine. The chassis is a square-tube spaceframe with an integral full rollover cage and the driver lays back with knees bent in true Grand Prix car style. The tiny dimensions of the Arrow take some getting used to. The wheels are virtually on the four corners and it looks barely big enough to accommodate a driver as tall as the car's wheelbase. Getting in involves curling up under the roll cage and sliding both feet towards the nose, then tilting your feet sideways to pass under the rack. Once ensconced there is plenty of room at the front for your feet, unlike some formula circuit racers, although it's as well not to dwell on the fact that your size 10s are now situated slightly ahead of the front axle line. The rollcage, however, gives a tremendous feeling of security despite the fact that vou sit on the car rather than in it; 'the cockpit sides barely come up past the driver's thigh, this detail also allowing the spectators to see the driver working - something sadly lacking in single seaters these days with the exception perhaps of the F1 Tyrrell!

The Mini engine is canted forwards in Alf's car, mainly to bring the driveshafts horizontal but also to put as much weight as posible low down. Modifications are as per full race Mini with short stroke Gordon Allen steel crank, steel Cooper "S" rods, Cosworth pistons and a Bryan Stark modified head which breathes through a single Weber. The package crackles easily into life with a traditional Leyland "A" series rasp and needs constant coaxing to keep it running, a legacy of the short stroke and wild cam timing, but once on the move it is a real joy, picking up instantly and pulling happily from 5,000 to 9,000 revs.

Looking at the car with its iron engine sat right at the extremity of the short wheelbase, it's difficult to rid yourself of less than endearing memories of other cars which employ the arrangement, notably the Skoda and some of the 60s and 70s Mini specials. These are all too ready to bite in sudden end swapping response to a moment of operator carelessness. Once on the oval however, such memories are quickly banished by the little machine which comes very much alive and is responsive to the driver's every input, displaying no immediate vice.

It is twitchy however, and the occupant must remain firmly in control with a measure of controlled aggression; allowing the car to drive the driver has dire consequences according to Alf! Clever engineering and thorough sorting has turned the car's slight instability into a positive benefit, allowing the drivers to change direction instantly. The science of engineering a way round a basically unsound concept is always a fascinating exercise. Porsche is the past master of this with its 911 series and as the rear-engined midget has all the same inherent problems, the remedies are similar. Boarer runs his car board-stiff at the rear, to support the engine and stop the back-end rolling about, while the front is so soft that even gentle foot pressure will move the nose down an inch or so. This is so the lightly loaded front has as much chance to grip without feeding any oversteer-inducing loads back to the rear. Suspension is very much as per conventional Formula Ford before the high tech pullrod era, with wide angled wishbones at the front connected to a good old Triumph Herald / Vitesse upright and four parallel links at the rear joining Alf-made fabricated upright.s.

On circuit, smoothness as ever is the key to getting the best from the car. The Mini unit buzzes happily down the straight at its 9.000 rpm optimum before you administer a sharp dab on the brakes and turn in. There is some instant oversteer here which requires firm and swift correction together with an application of throttle to halance the car before powering progressively through the corner. Not enough power at this point and the car will understeer wide, either forcing the driver to lift off or allowing one or more of the 29 others to sneak up the inside. All the running is done in second gear and the little machine really is an incredibly quick means of getting round the oval. It is no surprise to learn that the midgets are often the fastest cars in terms of lap times at Oval meetings. Another surprise was the heaviness of the steering in such a light car, heavier than it need be apparently as a grinning Alf later discovered the roll bar was fitted upside down! Alf does run a lot of castor however to aid stability down the straights but the trade-off is the effort required. The car's owner confesses to finishing second on one occasion because he hadn't enough strength left to overtake! after 50 laps!

In all a fascinating insight into yet another form of motorsport which leaves you in no doubt as to the seriousness and professionalism of this particular branch of oval sport and underlines the fact that every category has its own unique brand of science. Our thanks to Alf Boarer for a delightful experience.